What qualifies an eatery as a “hole-in-the-wall?” There are a few criteria (doesn’t have to meet all of them, but I’d say at least three):
- Hard to find, and/or has poor signage
- Small
- No website
- Inexpensive food
- A good chance an illegal gambling ring is going on in a back room
- Doesn’t look like much from the outside
- Decor? What decor?
From my observation, Khan’s Indian Kitchen fits the hole-in-the-wall bill quite nicely (except for the illegal gambling part). The store’s sign doesn’t even say the name.
Milk? Eggs? Produce? Cigarettes? That threw me off completely. I drove by twice thinking either I’d missed it, or it’d been replaced with another store. Finally I pulled into the tiny parking lot to check my phone and saw that little sign on the bottom left: “Indian Takeout.” Oh.
Not the prettiest of stores: a random couch near the entrance, a few haphazard tables, two aisles of Indian groceries, and a frozen foods freezer.
But at the back… the back is where the action is: a takeout counter of freshly prepared Indian dishes.
The white boards list all of the specialties, including biryanis, tikkas, kebabs, samosas, naans, and many more.
Everything in the display cases looked appealing.
I had a tough time deciding what I wanted, and asked if I could get a combo of items to go, selecting the chana masala (chickpeas), chicken parsi, and rice. With a side of naan.
The naan was hot and fresh, thinner and less doughy than other naans I’ve eaten.
The rest of the food I took home and reheated.
The chicken — with onions and tomatoes — had a nice kick to it, and both the rice and chickpeas were fragrant, flavorful and light. I liked this a lot.
And there’s the deciding factor — the quality of the food. It can elevate an eatery from literal hole in the wall, to “Hey, I know this great hole-in-the-wall!”
That’s why I enjoy and seek out these types of stores and restaurants. Sure, along the way I’ll make a few wrong turns, do a couple of drive-bys, feel underwhelmed by the dingy decor, and wonder, “Wait, is this place even open?”
But all that doesn’t matter much if the food’s good.
Khan’s Indian Kitchen
546 Commerce St.
Thornwood, NY
914-747-0445